Action needed to stop cross-border incursions

Myanmar on Sunday openly expressed regret for the first time for Friday's bombing incident across the Myanmar-China border, which left five Chinese citizens dead and eight others injured in Southwest China's Yunnan province.

The conflict between government forces and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army in Myanmar's northern Kokang region has resulted in increasing local displacements and financial losses, and even civilian casualties in its neighbors such as China.

Yet, given the highly sensitive nature of the clashes, none of the involved international or regional organizations, including the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has been able to make effective diplomatic interventions to end the conflict.